Etiquette for a Lady
by pony-girl298
Summary: A lady should be two things, classy and fabulous. The Gryffindor girls are growing up and learning how to live life like a lady, even if you're just a witch. Short drabbles based on an epigraph.
1. Your sexiest curve is your smile

**Etiquette for a Lady**

_The sexiest curve on your body is your smile. Flaunt it._

James sat at the Welcoming Feast surrounded by food. He hadn't eaten since morning, but he wasn't hungry. Not for food.

He stared fixedly at Lily Evans where she sat with her friends at the other end of the table. She was laughing at something Mary said. Not the little girlish giggles that he and Sirius got but a real full-throated laugh. Lily's face was split in two with her smile. She threw her head back and clapped he hands. Her laughter floated down the table.

As she turned from Mary to Marlene her eyes passed over James. For an instant, he was caught in the brilliance of her joy. James's breath hitched in his throat. It felt like the world slowed down.

But then it was gone. She reached across the table for more potatoes. James was back to staring at her.

"James," Remus nudged him but he didn't respond.

"Wake up Loverboy!" Sirius flicked his wand and water doused James's head.

"Hey!" James gasped as the other three Marauders laughed. "Jerk," he muttered as he wiped his glasses.

"Actually, I'd say that cold shower is exactly what you needed," said Remus, to more laughter.

"You are a goner over that girl," Sirius teased.

"I am not," James muttered.

"Really?"

"Really. I got over her this summer."

"You're not in love with her anymore?"

"Not in the slightest."

"So I can make a pass at her then?"

James grabbed his goblet and doused Sirius in pumpkin juice.

"Don't you dare!"

"Um, gents," Peter nodded down the table. The commotion had stopped all conversation at the Gryffindor table and half the Hufflepuff table behind them. Peter held a hand on to his cheek, shielding his face from the rest of the table. Remus was staring at his plate like it was a crystal ball that would tell him how to go back in time and never befriend either James or Sirius.

James sat down and sank into his seat. Sirius dried himself with a spell.

"So much for that, Prongs," he whispered.

"Shut up, Padfoot."

Sirius started humming a love song that had been playing on the radio all summer. James hit him in the arm but that only encouraged Remus and Peter to join in for a three-part harmony.

"_What I'd give for a smile from you, lady_

_The world will never know._

'_Cause you always spurn me, lady_

_And leave me all alone."_

James buried his head in his hands. "I hate you all."


	2. A little mystery goes a long way

**Etiquette for a Lady**

_Modesty isn't always overrated. A little mystery goes a long way_

They were waiting in the hall for the Transfiguration classroom to be emptied of third years when he saw her.

"Who's the new girl?" Sirius nodded to the other side of the hallway where Lily, Mary and a mystery girl were chatting. The girl had chestnut hair that curled around her shoulders. She wore a hint of dark makeup around her eyes, not enough to make her look like a raccoon, but enough to make her seem mysterious. Her lips were painted a lovely kissable pink. Sirius couldn't stop staring at her lips, wondering if they tasted as good as they looked.

"We've been back a week and you're only just noticing her?" Remus laughed.

"He and Jane only just came up for air," James teased.

"That's Katherine Fielding," Peter supplied. "She's new, sixth year. Used to be home schooled."

"Hmm, rooming with Evans and them?"

"No, she sleeps on the common room couches," Remus rolled his eyes.

"I've done that. They're actually _really _comfortable." The Marauders laughed. They all remembered Sirius's couch phase.

Sirius ran his hands through his hair. "How do I look?"

"Like someone about to be shut down," James said, earning him a smack in the shoulder. The Marauders had a rather abusive relationship.

Sirius sauntered over to the Gryffindor girls.

"Evans, MacDonald, how were your summers?" he asked, eyeing the new girl.

"Fine, thank you for asking a week late," Mary said, the sarcasm dripping from her words. She clearly knew exactly why he was here and it wasn't to talk about the summer.

"Well better late than never," Sirius dismissed. "Are you going to introduce me to your friend?" She was about 5'8", still shorter than him but taller than Lily and Mary.

"This is Kate. She's new," said Lily. "Kate, this is Sirius, who is anything but."

"She's right, I'm an old soul."

"Not what I meant," Lily muttered, but Sirius wasn't listening.

Sirius took Kate's hand and raised it to his lips. "Welcome to Hogwarts."

"Thank you," she let him kiss her knuckles but pulled her hand back when he tried to hang on to it.

"Where do you come to us from?"

"Home school."

"Oh? Do you have some deep, dark secret that kept you from our humble institution?"

Kate looked at him from under dark eyelashes. "Something like that." She smiled. Her eyes seemed to laugh at him. Something in her eyes made him start to sweat.

The third-years in the room before them were dismissed and the hall was suddenly filled with thirteen-year-olds. Kate followed Lily into the classroom.

The Marauders came up behind him and Sirius felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Was that as fun to experience as it was to watch?" James asked.

"I think she just beat you at your own game, Padfoot," Remus laughed. Peter and James joined in. Sirius didn't. She had indeed beaten him at what he thought was his game. Instead of getting her hot and bothered, he found that he was.

They sat down at the back of the class and he stared at the back of Kate's head. She sat in front and to the right of him and he could see the curve of her jaw. He watched her pale hands caress her dark hair as she swept it into a ponytail. A few tendrils in the back had resisted capture and they curled and teased at the nape of her delicate neck. She turned to talk to Mary and he stared along the curve of her neck to where it met her shoulder.

As if she felt his gaze, she looked over her shoulder at him. She didn't smile, but he felt like her eyes were laughing at him again.

Something hit him in the head and Sirius gasped back to reality. James had flicked paper at him. James smirked.

"Shut up," Sirius muttered.

James chuckled. "She's pretty."

"So is Lily," countered Sirius.

James grimaced. "Shut up."


	3. Divine Secrets of Gryffindor Sisterhood

Kate followed the girls upstairs to her new room. It was shaped like an octagon. Four walls were occupied by beds, two by windows, and the other two had the doors to the stairs and bathroom. All the furniture was made of warm coloured wood and combined with the red blankets, the whole room felt warm and cozy.

Even though she had just met them, Kate could tell that Mary was the fashion conscious one, Marlene was the wild, outspoken one, and Lily was the responsible studious one.

Mary was raking a wide toothed comb through Marlene's wild curly hair.

"Do you not own a brush at home?" Mary scolded.

"Of course I do. I just can't be bothered with all your crazy muggle hair products."

"It's not that hard," said Mary, yanking on Marlene's hair. "Hold still."

"Ow! You're going to make me bald!"

Kate laughed. The two of them were like sisters. They certainly squabbled like sisters.

"Pipe down, you two," Lily called from the bathroom.

If Mary and Marlene were little kids, Lily was their big sister. She'd play with them most of the time but every so often she was called in to break up a fight.

"Make me!" Marlene called back.

Lily crossed to the door of the bathroom in one step. She seized a pillow off the nearest bed and flung it at Marlene. Marlene ducked and the pillow hit Mary square in the face.

"Ah!" Mary fell back onto the bed. She righted herself quickly and grabbed a pillow off of her bed.

"You're going to get it!" she chased Lily around the room while Lily screamed. She ducked behind Marlene.

"Protect me!"

"No! Leave me out of this!" Marlene laughed and ducked away. Lily ran to Kate. Rather than help, Kate grabbed Lily and held her down while Mary hit her with the pillow.

"Ah! No!" Lily laughed. "Uncle! Uncle!"

The girls all collapsed on the floor in a heap of laughter. Mary and Kate high-fived above Lily's head.

"Oh! I can't breathe. My sides hurt!" Marlene laughed.

As they all calmed down, Kate looked around at her new roommates. Maybe this year would be all right. Maybe she could manage.

Lily sat up and straightened her hair and robes. "All right," she said in a business-like tone. "I think it's time for our ritual and we can initiate Kate."

"Initiate?" Kate asked but no one was listening.

Mary, Marlene and Lily jumped up and started pulling things out of their trunks. Marlene spread out a large red blanket on the floor while Lily arranged a handful of candles on a plate and put it in the middle of the blanket.

"Here," Mary threw a red and yellow striped scarf at Kate. "Tie this around your head."

"What?" Kate laughed and looked at the scarf. She watched Mary and the others tie the scarf over their foreheads with the knot under their hair. She did the same, wondering what the heck she had gotten herself in to.

The four girls sat around the edge of the blanket. They all linked hands.

Marlene seemed to be the Master of Ceremonies, so she started.

"We gather here today to bid welcome to another school year and to welcome a new member to the Sisterhood of Gryffindor," Marlene intoned in a voice reserved playing Shakespeare or for Catholic confession. "We have spent the summer apart and it has strengthened our bonds to the world and to those who we love. But now that we are together again, let us renew our vows to Hogwarts, to Gryffindor, and to each other."

"On behalf of us all," Lily picked up the script. "I vow that I will help you when you need helping, cover your ass when your knickers fall down, and always be there for you to lean on."

"Amen," Mary whispered. Kate giggled. Lily shushed them both.

"We have a new member here today," Marlene continued in a solemn voice. "And though we have only met, we know that Kate will forever be a part of our family. We ask the spirits of Hogwarts and the women who have come before us to bless her as our sister and to stop her from running screaming back to London when she finds out what we're really like."

Kate and Mary both giggled and this time Lily and Marlene joined in.

"Sister Mary," said Marlene. "Bring forth the sacred vessel." Mary reached behind her and handed Marlene a bowl. Marlene poured pumpkin juice into it. Then she reached behind her, under her mattress, and pulled out another, smaller bottle that was almost empty of amber liquid.

"What's that?" Lily asked.

"Firewhiskey," Marlene grinned while the other three gasped.

"I don't know, Marlene," Mary said.

"What? I nicked it from my Dad's liquor cabinet. He didn't notice and if he does, he'll think that my brother took it."

The other girls watched with wide eyes as Marlene measured out a bottle cap full and poured it into the pumpkin juice. She took a sip and gasped.

Feeling uncertain, Kate took the bowl. Three pairs of expectant eyes stared at her. She raised the bowl to her lips and the liquid seared down her throat. She gasped as she handed it off so the other two could drink it too. Once the burning sensation faded, a warm feeling spread from her stomach through her whole body until she was warm to her fingers and toes.. Kate smiled.

The girls joined hands again, this time with their palms pressed together and fingers intertwined.

"We are the mighty Gryffindor Girls!" Marlene cried. They all raised their arms. "Let no man bring us down!"

"Gryffindor!" cried Lily.

"GRRRRRYFINDOR!"


	4. Unscheduled Events

That first night, Kate lay in bed staring up at the canopy. It was so quiet that she couldn't sleep. She knew that she was strange. Most people wanted it quiet at night. But Kate had grown up in London. Night time without the street noise was just strange.

Kate sighed and rolled over. If every night was going to be like this, she wasn't sure she'd last the year. She closed her eyes and listened to the other three girls breathing. It was so quiet.

She didn't like the quiet. It gave her nothing to distract herself with. Quiet gave her too much space to think.

Kate carefully got up and pulled the blankets off the bed, wrapping them around her shoulders. She slipped silently out of the dorm and padded barefoot down the stairs into the common room. It was deserted but the remnants of the fire still burned.

Kate walked over and teased it back to life until it crackled and spat. Then she went to the window and opened it. The wind rustled the trees of the Forbidden Forest. Owls hooted to each other. Something splashed in the lake. Not quite London traffic but it would do. She wondered what the other city kids did. Were they simply used to the resounding silence after all their years here? Did Hogwarts become their home since they spent so much time here? And the place where their parents lived, what became of it?

Kate lay down on the sofa and wrapped herself in the blankets. With the sounds of the fire and nature keeping her company, she managed to fall into a fitful sleep.

When the sun rose, Kate crept back upstairs and into bed. Her roommates never knew she'd been gone.

The next morning, the Gryffindors sat down to breakfast and reviewed their new schedules. Kate had done her O.W.L.s with Aunt Grace, and she had encouraged Kate to sign up for as many sixth year classes as she qualified for. Kate was in Transfiguration, Charms, Defence Against the Dark Arts, Potions, Arithmancy, Ancient Runes, and History of Magic. The others were shocked that she was taking that last one.

"Why on earth would you have taken History of Magic?" Marlene gasped.

"Oh leave her alone," Mary chided. "She couldn't have known. But seriously, Kate. Save yourself now and drop it."

"What?" demanded Kate. "I like History! Don't you want to know where you came from?"

"I come from Godric's Hollow, thank you," James said. "That's all I care to know."

"But what about before that?" pressed Kate. "What about your ancestors? Aren't you curious about how we got to where we are today?"

"It's not the subject that we don't like," Peter said gently. "It's the teacher. Professor Binns is the most boring lecturer in all of Britain."

"Yeah, he even bored himself to death!" Sirius laughed and everyone joined in. Kate was still confused.

"Professor Binns is a ghost," Sirius explained.

"What?" gasped Kate.

"Sounds mad, right? The story goes that he took a nap and when he woke up to go teach his class, he left his body behind."

"Well, that's devotion to your job," Kate laughed.

"Funny, we call it obsession," James called down the table.

Peter leaned over to Kate. "Just a warning, Binns tends to fall asleep during class, sometimes mid-sentence."

Kate's eyes widened. She smiled at Peter and added him to her mental group of reliable friends which also included Lily, Mary, and Marlene.

She could already see that of the boys, Peter was the most likely to give her useful information about the school. James and Sirius didn't take life seriously enough and Remus always looked so tired and slightly out of touch with what was going on around him.

"Hey! We have Charms together," Sirius reached around Kate's shoulders and pointed at her schedule. His arm encircled her back. Kate suppressed a shiver. She took a breath to steady herself but ended up breathing in his scent. He smelled like leather and something slightly musky. A cologne maybe?

Kate stared down at her schedule. She didn't look at Sirius. Peter might be the most informative, but Sirius...

"You don't do subtle, do you?" she asked, trying to keep her voice steady.

"How could you tell?" Sirius asked with a sheepish smile. He didn't retract his arm.

Kate laughed. "It's like the Knight Bus crashed into my living room."

Sirius sat up and pulled back his arm. Where he had been touching her felt cold for a second. Kate almost leaned closer to him but caught herself.

"Lucky you, you have almost all your classes with me," Sirius grinned at Kate. "Everything but Arithmancy, Ancient Runes, and History of Magic." He shuddered dramatically, making Kate laugh.

"What are you taking instead?" she asked.

"Astronomy and Muggle Studies."

"Muggle Studies?" Kate asked. "What's that like? Do you learn much?"

"I've learned that it's an easy mark, and an easy way to make my parents crazy," laughed Sirius. Kate frowned. "What?"

"Tell me you've learned something besides that," she said. "Something useful."

He shrugged. "I suppose, sure. What's the big deal?"

"Nothing," Kate looked down at her hands. "I just think that it's important. It should be required for all pure-blood students."

"You think?" Marlene asked.

"Yes! Aren't you ever curious about how the other half lives?" Kate asked. "I mean Lily and Mary's parents are muggle."

"My Mum too," Remus said.

"My Dad," Kate smiled. She couldn't quite muster a full smile like before. Talk of muggles had brought up too many memories. She felt her happy mood melt.

"Did something happen?" Sirius asked. He was looking at her with mild concern. "I've never seen you so serious."

"You've known me less than twenty-four hours," she snapped.

Sirius stared at the side of her head. Where had that come from? She wasn't looking at him and that bothered him more than he was willing to admit. He wanted to see her expression but a curtain of hair hid her face.

He ate his breakfast and half listened to the conversations around him while he considered what to say. She beat him to it. Without a word to anyone, Kate got up from the table and left.

Lily, who had been distracted trying to fend off James, leaned forward.

"What did you do?" she demanded.

"What? Nothing!" Sirius gasped.

"Really," Lily gave him a look that made him think she'd be a good Mum one day.

Marlene defended him. "Even I'm not sure what happened, Lil," she said. "Kate was fine one minute and going off in a huff the next."

Sirius didn't often wonder what went on in girls' heads. Girls were usually pretty easy to understand to him, and he prided himself on that. But Kate... Kate was an enigma.

Well, it had been a while since he'd had a challenge.


	5. Quidditch Surprises

Sirius was trying to get away from James. He never thought that the day would come when he wanted James to go jump in the lake and get eaten by the giant squid. But it was barely the end of the first week and it had come.

"Come on, you'd be a brilliant Chaser!" James said for the hundredth time. "When we play against Remus and Peter in the summers we're unstoppable."

James was currently chasing Sirius down the hall. Sirius wasn't sure where he was going. The only destination in his mind was away from James.

"I am not trying out for Quidditch," Sirius said with a sigh. They'd been having this conversation since the middle of August, when Sirius had taken refuge at the Potters' house and James had received the Captain appointment.

"But I'm-"

"You friend, yes. Which is why I'm not playing Quidditch. I would like to continue to be your friend."

"What's that supposed to mean?" James practically squawked.

Sirius laughed. "I've played with you. You're a slave-driver. Even when it's a friendly match between the four of us, you _have _to win."

"And if you're on the team, we will win."

"No, if I'm on the team I'll get expelled because I'll have murdered you by Christmas."

James stopped walking. Sirius stopped too and looked back at him.

"Am I really that bad?" James asked.

"You're my best mate, and I say this in the nicest way possible," Sirius sighed and draped an arm around James's shoulder. "I would rather share a cell in Azkaban with Snivellus for the rest of my life than join your Quidditch team."

James ducked out of Sirius's arm and smacked him in the shoulder. Sirius just laughed.

James laughed too but it was short lived. A look of desolation spread over his face.

"What am I going to do? Honestly?" he asked. "I have four positions to fill. There's only me, Gideon, and Emmeline left."

"I'm sure you'll manage," Sirius soothed. "Look at it this way, Slytherin has a new captain too."

"Yeah, but Vanity was the only one who graduated last year. Lucinda is only short a keeper. I have to find two chasers, one beater, and a keeper."

They had somehow arrived back at Gryffindor Tower. James gave the password and the two boys climbed in the portrait hole.

The sixth year girls were sitting around chatting. James cleared his throat, ruffled his hair and sauntered over. Sirius muffled a laugh and followed him.

"Hello, girls," James said. "Do I have a proposition for you."

"We're not joining the Quidditch team," Lily said without looking up.

"Ga- I- How do you do that?"

The other girls laughed. Sirius watched Kate laugh. Her eyes crinkled. She showed her teeth when she laughed, not like some girls who giggled with their mouths closed.

He had been trying to talk to her since she had run away from the breakfast table a few days ago. He had the vague impression that she was avoiding him. He had never been avoided by a girl before. Well, not at this stage of the game.

He sat down next to her on the sofa. She didn't tell him to leave or hit him so he took that as a good sign.

"Seriously though, I'm desperate," James was practically begging. "Do any of you play Quidditch?"

"Muggle-born," said Mary.

"Me too," said Lily.

"That's no excuse," Kate said. She nudged Mary with her foot, who rolled her eyes.

"You don't play either!" Mary teased.

"But you're half-blood," James said looking at Kate. "You grew up with magic."

"I grew up in London. Where do you imagine I could have played Quidditch?"

"In your back garden?"

"I live in a flat."

"In the park?"

"Full of Muggles."

James made a whimpering noise.

"What about you, Miss McKinnon?" he asked turning to Marlene. "Care to save my hide?"

She casually brushed a stray blonde curl out of her face. "I can swing a beater's bat."

"Really?" James swept her up off the sofa and embraced her.

"Ah! James!" Marlene squirmed out of his arms while everyone laughed. "I didn't say I was any good!"

"It doesn't matter," James said. "Just come to tryouts so I'm not all alone like an idiot."

"You don't need her help with that," Lily muttered. James heard and his face fell slightly. He regained his stride quickly though.

"Are you going to come?" he asked leaning over the back of Lily's chair. "Cheer on your friend? Admire the Quidditch captain who's going to win the cup this year?"

"Oh?" Lily turned around to look at him. "Is Ravenclaw having tryouts at the same time?"

Sirius roared with laughter. This was why he stuck around when James was trying to flirt with Lily.

"I have an idea," Kate said turning to Sirius. "The girls have told me a bit about all of you in your little group, The Marauders."

"Oh really?" Sirius threw an arm over the back of the sofa, sort of but not quite, around her.

"Yes really," Kate leaned away a little, though her tone of voice didn't change. "And I think that if we spread the rumour that Sirius Black is going to be looking for a girlfriend at the Quidditch tryouts, the entire female population of the house will show up."

The others burst out laughing. Kate grinned. Sirius was actually surprised. It wasn't often that a girl could surprise him.

"That's a brilliant idea, Kate!" Mary laughed. "As long as you're all right with an all-girls' team, James."

"I'll take any team I can get!" laughed James.

"Then it's decided," Kate sat up and clasped her hands in her lap, all business-like. "Tryouts are next week, right? We'll work the rumour mill and get you a brilliant turnout."

"Work the rumour mill?" James echoed. "How do you do that?"

The four girls exchanged a glance.

"We're girls, James," Mary said. "Don't question it."

That night, the four Gryffindor girls stood around two sinks in their bathroom brushing their teeth for bed.

"Are you really going to try out for Quidditch, Marlene?" Mary asked, spitting into the sink.

Marlene shrugged. "I think I'll go to the tryouts. I doubt Potter will ask me to join the team. I'm decent but I'm not exactly Hollyhead Harpie material."

"What are your intentions?" Lily demanded suddenly.

"Wha?" Marlene asked around her toothbrush. She spat into the basin. "What are you talking about?"

"Your intentions with Potter," Lily's voice had an edge to it. "We all saw you in the common room: 'I can swing a beater's bat,'." Lily flipped her hair dramatically over her shoulder in a caricature of Marlene's hair flip.

"Well I can," Marlene said defensively. "What does it matter?"

"It- it doesn't," Lily said. "It's just... He's James Potter."

"I know that!" laughed Marlene. "I dated Sirius for Merlin's sake. I can handle myself."

"But can you handle him? He's persistent if he chooses a goal."

Marlene snorted. "You would know better than anyone."

Kate had been standing off to the side, brushing her teeth and watching them.

Now, she spoke. "You fancy him," she said.

"What?" Lily gasped.

"You fancy James Potter," repeated Kate.

"No, I don't!" Lily almost shouted. Mary and Marlene buried their smiles in their hands and shoulders.

"Then why the inquisition?" Kate asked. "If you don't fancy him, what does it matter about Marlene's intentions?"

"I-I... Marlene's my friend. I wanted to make sure she knew what she was getting herself in to. That's all." Lily rinsed her mouth and stomped back into the dormitory.

Mary was grinning at Kate.

"What?" Kate asked.

Mary lowered her voice so Lily in the other room couldn't hear. "You've been here a week and you already picked up on that?"

"I'm right then?" Kate smiled and glanced through the open door. Lily was sitting on her bed with a book open on her knees. She wasn't reading. Her eyes weren't moving.

"Of course you're right," Marlene said. "It's just nice to have confirmation that it's as obvious to everyone else as to us. We've been in it so long that it's hard to tell."

"It's obvious, trust me," Kate leaned forward and drew the other two into a huddle. "Is there any plan?"

"To get Lily and James together? Of course," laughed Mary. "There have been many since the beginning of fourth year. None of them have worked."

"So if you have any ideas, we'd love to hear them." Marlene finished.

Kate rinsed her mouth and put her toothbrush away.

"I'll let you know if I come up with anything."


	6. 3 AM

As the clock chimed three, the Gryffindor common room was deserted, save for one. Kate sat in the window seat with her knees drawn up to her chin.

She couldn't sleep again. She's been at Hogwarts a week had had yet to sleep through the night.

The dream was back. Kate attributed it to being in a strange environment. She figured it would go away when she got used to Hogwarts. It still bothered her though. She didn't want to go back to sleep. Why couldn't the dream just leave her alone?

She hadn't been this restless at night since she was a child. But Aunt Grace wasn't there to comfort her this time. And she couldn't leave Gryffindor Tower to get a snack like she usually would. So, she stared out the window. At least she wasn't screaming in her sleep like when she was six. That would not be easy to explain.

Kate heard the boys' stairs creak behind her and she turned. Sirius Black stood on the bottom step, leaning on the wall, staring at her back.

"Been there long?" she asked over her shoulder.

"No, I just got here." Sirius came over and sat with her in the window seat. She noticed that he didn't ask. He just invited himself to sit with her.

As he sat down, she caught a wind of his scent. Even in his pyjamas, he smelled like leather and that indefinable musky smell. It was a completely masculine smell. Kate drew her dressing gown around her as goosebumps raised on her arms. She was suddenly aware that she wasn't wearing a bra under her pyjama shirt.

Her eyes took in Sirius' appearance and she realized that he wasn't wearing much either: just sweatpants and an undershirt under his dressing gown. He had a broad chest and abs that the uniform robes didn't do justice.

Sirius noticed Kate's eyes dip down to his chest. He smiled, silently blessing whatever intuition told him not to wear full pyjamas that night.

"I hope I'm not disturbing you?" Sirius asked.

"No, I was just going back up-"

"Liar."

"So are you," she countered. "You'd been standing there a good thirty seconds before I said anything."

He grinned at her spunk. "Guilty as charged," he held out his arms, wrists crossed. "Tie me up and punish me."

Kate looked away quickly. Her whole countenance stiffened. Sirius watched her. He didn't understand. What had he said?

"So," he said breaking the silence. "You couldn't sleep?"

"No. You?"

"No." The silence descended again. Sirius really wasn't getting anything out of Kate. From her body language, he knew she like him. He noticed her fidgeting and smiling, furtive glances when he was around. But he hadn't been able to get any farther. Most girls liked to talk about themselves. Sirius had been trying to talk to Kate all week and had gotten nowhere. Whenever he tried to find out things about her she changed the subject. He'd even resorted to asking her roommates, but they seemed to be as much in the dark as he was. McKinnon had said that Kate didn't talk about herself.

"Remus' snoring woke me up," He volunteered. "That boy snores like a troll. It's a wonder you can't hear it."

"I'd have thought you'd be used to his snoring after so many years," Kate gave him the half smile that had become so familiar. She only ever gave him a half smile.

"I'd have thought so too, but no," said Sirius. "What about you? What's keeping you from sleeping?"

Kate was silent for a moment. "Just a bad dream."

"It'll pass," Sirius said. He wasn't sure if it was the right thing to say. "It's just a dream."

"Not this one," she answered. "This dream is different." She didn't look at him. She was looking out the window, down onto the Lake. "I've been waiting for it to pass for ten years."

Sirius studied her profile. She was a million miles away and it didn't look like a very nice place. Time for a change of topic.

"Want to snog?" he asked.

Kate whipped her head around and made a noise between a gasp and a laugh.

"What?" she asked.

"We're alone in the middle of the night. There's a roaring fire and a really comfortable sofa. It seems like the natural thing to do, don't you think?" He gave his most charming smile.

Kate smiled her half smile. "No, not tonight."

"Not tonight, but maybe in the future?"

Kate chuckled and Sirius scored a silent point for making her laugh.

"You are determined, I'll give you that," she said.

"Anything else you'd like to give me?"

"Like I said, not tonight."

"Fair enough," Sirius said with a nod. "But, I distracted you from that dream, didn't I?"

Kate sat up, looking surprised. "You did," she said. "I didn't notice, but you really did." She smiled and Sirius was glad to see that it was more than the half smile that was her usual. She looked slightly embarrassed but happy nonetheless.

Kate got up off the window seat.

"On that note, I'm going back to bed."

"Already?" Sirius gave her his best puppy eyes.

Kate chuckled again. "Yes, already."

He watched her as she walked across the common room to the girls' stairs. At the bottom she stopped and turned around.

"Thank you," she said. "Oddly, you helped."

Sirius smiled. "Anytime. Goodnight."

"Goodnight."

Kate went back up to her dorm and crawled back into bed. She fell asleep quickly and slept soundly through until morning.


	7. Just a Walk

Kate quickly became friends with her roommates and by the end of September it felt like she'd always been a part of their group. The only time that her status as a transfer student was obvious was in her attention span. When she'd been homeschooled, it had only been her and Aunt Grace. She had never been in a classroom setting with other students. There had been no distractions. About once an hour, someone would have to prod her in the side to bring her attention back to the class. Lily caught her staring blankly out the window or at a spot on the floor a few times. Lily wondered what she was thinking about.

"Why can't classes just be practical application?" Kate groaned and laid her head on her arms. The sixth year girls were in the common room doing homework. Kate had trouble taking notes in class so she was having trouble with her Transfiguration essay.

"I know how to do the spell, why do I care about the theory behind it?"

"Knowing the theory is important," said Lily without looking up from her essay. They'd been working for the same amount of time but Lily's was double the length of Kate's.

Kate grumbled. "I've gotten on fine without theory so far."

"Yes, but these are sixth year classes. You'll need to know theory to pass your N.E.W.T. exams next year."

Kate got up and stretched. "I'm going for a walk," she announced.

"Where?" Lily asked without looking up.

"I don't know. Outside probably," Kate looked out the window. "Care to join me? It's such a nice day. I feel like we should enjoy it."

Lilly shook her head. "Maybe later. I'm on a roll with this."

Kate walked off alone. The castle was so big that it alarmed her somewhat. Her classes had always just been in her house, mostly at the kitchen table. Having a separate room for each class was new to her.

She heard footsteps behind her. They were matching her speed. Whenever she slowed, they slowed and the same if she sped up. Someone was following her and didn't want to be noticed.

Kate sighed and turned around. Sirius Black was reading an announcement board that Kate knew hadn't been updated in weeks.

"Come on, then," she called. He looked at her with exaggerated surprise.

"Kate! Fancy running into you here," he grinned as he approached her.

She raised an eyebrow at his obvious lie but didn't call him on it.

"I was about to go outside for a walk," she said.

"Ah yes," Sirius said. "Enjoying the last days of warmth before Old Man Winter gets us in his claws."

"Exactly."

"Of course, there are many ways to occupy oneself indoors too," he grinned again. "Especially when it's cold outside."

Then Kate did something that he didn't expect at all. She laughed. Not a hard laugh, just a small scoff. It hurt though.

"Really?" she asked. "Did you really just use that line?"

Sirius's face fell a little. "What? It was charming. Girls like that."

"Maybe girls who are already planning to snog you in a broom closet. Which I'm not."

Kate started to walk away. Sirius caught up easily.

"I never said anything of the sort," he said with exaggerated haughtiness. Then he grinned. "But now that you mention it..."

"I'm going for a walk outside," Kate said. "If you'd like to join me, leave the obnoxious innuendo here."

"I can do that."

As Kate turned towards the door, Sirius leaned down over the back of her neck and whispered in her ear.

"You laughed, though."

His breath touched her neck and she gave an involuntary shudder. Goosebumps raised on her neck and shoulders.

She swallowed and blinked before turning to him.

"That wasn't a real laugh," she said as she mastered herself. "A pity laugh, nothing else."

"Doesn't matter. A laugh is a laugh."

The two Gryffindors walked in silence out of the front doors and down the steps.

Their friendship over the last month confused Kate. He was almost insufferably flirtatious with her. Usually she liked it. It was nice to know that someone thought she was worth all that trouble.

But he was Sirius Black. Kate's roommates had warned her about him. He was Hogwarts' notorious womanizer and had been since the beginning of fifth year. Marlene had even had a brief fling with him. Though according to her, it had only lasted two weeks. Kate had no desire to add a notch to his bedpost.

And sometimes... sometimes she would be struck with apprehension. Sometimes when he flirted with her she felt afraid. She couldn't explain why.

"So, tell me about yourself," Sirius said as they walked.

"What?"

"I'm trying to get to know you. It's what I do with girls I'm not snogging in broom closets."

Kate smiled. "What do you want to know?"

"Well, what was your life like before you came to us?"

"I lived in London with my aunt and uncle. My aunt homeschooled me."

"What about your parents?"

"My mother died when I was young and my father... isn't around."

Sirius's eyes widened but he tried not to let the surprise show on his face. Kate wasn't looking at him though. She was staring out at the lake with unfocused eyes.

"I'm sorry," he said lamely.

Kate shrugged. "I was so young I barely remember my mother. I see my father every few years but it's so awkward I'd almost rather not. My aunt and uncle are the best parents I could ask for." Her words were dismissive but her voice was just a little too flat to be natural. She was forcing whatever emotions she was feeling down.

Suddenly, she blinked and looked back at him. "What about you? What's your family like?"

Sirius scoffed. "I try not to think about them."

"Why?"

"We don't get along," he said. "We have differences of opinion."

"Yes," Kate smirked. "I've met your brother."

"What did he say?" demanded Sirius, all humour suddenly gone.

Kate was startled. "Nothing to me. I overheard him bullying some Hufflepuff second years."

"Hmm, well I guess I can still beat him up for that," Sirius smiled to himself. Kate laughed.

"Now imagine a whole family like him: Mother, Father, aunts, uncles, cousins; the whole lot save for a few. And those few get disowned."

"Sounds dreadful."

"It is. But it's fun making them angry with me," he laughed. "My room at the house is all crimson and gold of Gryffindor and I like reminding them that one of my best mates is a half blood."

"Hmm, I never would have pegged you for the sadistic type."

"Sadistic?" he faked outrage which quickly turned into a grin. "Maybe a little. I also have an open invitation at the Potters' if things get too unbearable with my parents. The past few years, I've ended up at their house for the last few weeks of the summer."

"That explains a lot."

"What?"

"You and James are practically joined at the hip."

Sirius shrugged. "We're mates."

"You're brothers," Kate said. Sirius was taken aback but she went on. "I've gathered that he's an only child and you don't get on with your actual brother. You two have become surrogate brothers."

Sirius thought about it for a moment and smiled. It wasn't the sexy grin that he'd been giving Kate all along, but a real smile.

"Yeah, I guess you're right."

They had finished the circuit of the lake and had arrived back at the castle doors. Kate started for the stairs to Gryffindor Tower and Sirius followed her.

"I should get back to work," she said. "I have to finish my Charms essay."

"All right. I have to, um... pretend to be doing something, I suppose."

Kate laughed. They stopped in front of the portrait of the Fat Lady. Neither gave the password.

"This was nice," Kate said. "I needed the distraction."

"I, surprisingly, have to agree," answered Sirius. "Best time I've had with a girl not snogging."

Kate rolled her eyes. She gave the password and went to sit back with Lily who had been joined by Marlene.

Lily had long since finished her Transfiguration essay and she and Marlene had their Ancient Runes translation on the table in front of them. Neither of them was working on it though. They were both staring at Kate.

"What?" Kate asked.

Lily bit her lip and went back to her homework. Marlene, always the less subtle of the two, spoke. "You were out with Sirius?" she demanded.

"We went for a walk, sure." Kate shrugged. Marlene was still staring at her with wide eyes.

Kate sighed. "What, Marlene? Spit it out."

"That's all?" Marlene sounded like she didn't believe Kate. "Sirius Black does not go for 'just walks' with girls. Especially not with pretty girls like you."

"I try." Kate primped at the compliment. Lily laughed but Marlene clearly wanted more details.

"It was just a walk. We talked. That's all."

"I'm inclined to believe her, Mar," Lily chimed in. "I mean does it look like she was mauled by a bear?" Kate and Marlene burst out laughing.

"What?" Lily said. "That's what the girls look like when they come back from snogging Sirius Black. Kate does not look like that, so I'd say you can rule it out."

"Who'd have thought?" Marlene smiled at Kate and shook her head. "The notorious Mr. Black finally tamed. I feel like we should give you a statue."

Kate hit Marlene with a pillow.

"I have an essay to write. Kindly shut up."


End file.
